Military Strategy and the Future of Warfare
with Lieutenant General (retired) Charles Cleveland
Wednesday, September 28, 2022
5:00-6:00 PM ET
Join the Institute for Politics and Strategy for a conversation on military strategy and the future of warfare with Lieutenant General (retired) Charles Cleveland. Prior to his retirement, LTG(R) Cleveland had completed three years as the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command. Previous positions were as Commander, Special Operations Command-Central (USCENTCOM) 2008-2011, and Commander, Special Operations Command-South (USSOUTHCOM) 2005-2008. He commanded the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) 2001-2003 where during the 2003 invasion of Iraq he also commanded Combined Joint Task Force Viking, a force of over 5000 US soldiers and 65,000 Kurdish Peshmerga, with an operational area of responsibility that included the northern third of Iraq. He currently is on the Board of Directors for VK Integrated Systems and is a member of the Advisory Boards for ITility LLC, Gantz Mountain Automated Intelligence Systems Inc., and Zignal Labs, he serves as a Senior Mentor for the U.S. Army, and is an Adjunct at the Rand Corporation.
LTG(R) Cleveland is on the Board of Directors for VK Integrated Systems and is a member of the Advisory Boards for ITility LLC, Gantz Mountain Automated Intelligence Systems Inc., and Zignal Labs. He is also on the Board of Advisors for Global SOF Foundation, and Spirit of America. He acts as an independent consultant to the leadership of the Institute for Security and Technology, Immersive Wisdom, the Science, Technology and Research INC. He serves as a Senior Mentor for the U.S. Army and is an Adjunct at the Rand Corporation. Since retiring, he lectured on leadership and strategy at Notre Dame’s Mendoza Business School, the Naval Post Graduate School, the National War College, the Norwegian War College, and the Army War College. He co-authored Military Strategy in the 21st Century, (Cambria, 2018) and The American Way of Irregular War, (Rand, 2020). He was appointed in 2019 by the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee to the NDAA-directed Syria Study Group which provided Congress an assessment of the U.S. strategy. He was the CSA’s Senior Mentor to the CSA Strategic Studies Group from 2015-2017, prior to serving as an HQE-SM at the Army War College.
At the time of his retirement in 2015, he had completed three years as the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command. Previous positions were as Commander, Special Operations Command-Central (USCENTCOM) 2008-2011, and Commander, Special Operations Command-South (USSOUTHCOM) 2005-2008. He commanded the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) 2001-2003 where during the 2003 invasion of Iraq he also commanded Combined Joint Task Force Viking, a force of over 5000 US soldiers and 65,000 Kurdish Peshmerga, with an operational area of responsibility that included the northern third of Iraq.
His various senior leader positions in the Army included leading both operational and institutional commands charged with the preparation and execution of budgets of over $2B/year. His ARSOF 2022 initiatives at the U.S. Army Special Operations Command provided a foundation for American irregular warfare doctrine and helped reenergize U.S Unconventional Warfare capabilities.
He was the Chief of Personnel for the U.S. Army’s Special Forces Officer Branch; a Special Forces Battalion Commander in 10th SF Group; Special Operations Action Officer on the Joint Staff in Washington D.C.; Special Forces Company and Detachment Commander assigned to 7th Special Forces Group in Panama, and Counterintelligence Company Commander in Germany. In 1979, he began his Army career in the 10th Special Forces Group at Ft Devens, MA.
His notable operational experience includes commanding counterinsurgency campaigns in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Lebanon, and Pakistan (2008-2011), foreign internal defense campaigns throughout Latin America and hostage rescue operations in Colombia (2005-2008), Peacekeeping in Bosnia (1995-1997), and Kosovo (2001), Operation Just Cause – the 1989 U.S. overthrow of the regime in Panama, and conducting counternarcotic operations with DEA and Bolivian National Police in Bolivia (1987) and counterinsurgency training in El Salvador (1987-1988) and Venezuela (1988).
He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, Armed Forces Staff College, and Army War College. His military awards include the Combat Infantryman’s Badge (2nd Award), the Distinguished Service Medal and the Bronze Star. He speaks good Spanish and passable German. He is a 1978 West Point graduate. Married to Mary Ann for 43 years, they have three grown children.
